Raymond Ortiz

October 20, 2002|The Morning Call

Raymond Ortiz, 39, of Easton, died Oct. 14 in Easton Hospital.

He was the host of a weekly variety show at the Stonewall Bar, Allentown, where he was crowned Miss Stonewall last November. The co-founder of The House of Mascara, an organization of female illusionists in the Lehigh Valley, he used the stage name "Mona Moody."

Born in Manhattan, N.Y., he was a son of Isabel Ortiz of Manhattan and the late Roman Ortiz.

Active in AIDS awareness, he held several fund-raising events for Fighting AIDS Continuously Together, PRIDE of the Lehigh Valley, the Northeastern Pennsylvania Gay and Lesbian Hispanic Association, and other supporting organizations in the Lehigh Valley and Bucks County. He served on the board of PRIDE and was a judge of the FACT Summer Games at Rainbow Mountain Resort, Martins Creek, last month.

Survivors: Mother; sisters, Anna Mejia and Elizabeth, both of New York City; nieces.